Like this:

The name of this interesting App is 1st Video; it was designed by startup company Veicorder Technology Inc.. It was realeased yesterday and costs $9.99 at the App Store.
I had the opportunity to review Vericorder Technology’s apps at the 2010 NAB Show in Las Vegas. As matter of fact, I downloaded their Showcase app and produced a few field reports on the RTDNA conference and the Showcase app itself. I was, indeed, impressed with Showcase, which can produce video slideshows using the iPhone’s still picture camera and microphone.
With 1st Video, you can shoot and edit video and audio right on your iPhone. Your video can be posted or shared on blogs, YouTube, and even newsrooms; all of this using the 3G network or an internet connection.

For on-the-spot freelance news coverage is beyond great. 1st Video’s President and CEO, Gary Symons, told me that they are developing a system that will allow freelance reporters to subscribe their services to a computer intereface allowing major news networks to pinpoint through GPS the freelancer’s location. What does it mean? It means that in breaking news situations or stories in remote locations demanding immediate attention, a freelance reporter can be located and hired on the spot, and reports can be filed using a data network.
For instance, if there’s a flash flood in Iowa and network reporters can’t make to the scene for any reason, a registered freelance reporter in the affected area can be found with the help of GPS, and hired to produce a news report about the flood using her/his iPhone.
I purchased yesterday 1st Video – Consumer Edition and gave it try. The interface was easy to use, the real-time response was impressive, and the tools provided by the app to edit video and audio were more than I thought was possible in an iPhone. I put together a simple piece of video and exported it to YouTube directly from my iPhone. Here’s the final result:

Like this:

The NX5U is not a tape camera as you already know. The NX5U delivers AVCHD files. The BEST option for you is to purchase either FAST SONY DUO cards or a lesser priced alternative- SDHC CARDS. Make sure your SDHC cards are CLASS 6 and above. Purchase a fast USB card reader. Place the USB cable into your unit from the CARD READER and OPEN up a PROJECT designated as HD. Use a card reader instead of the camera’s USB jack. Reported sporadic incompatability with other systems when using the USB jack directly from the camera.

The NX cameras are having a problem, it is called a BUFFER-OVERFLOW when using BOTH internal and external drives in tandem. SONY are working on a firmware update. However, be careful not to blame your unit if you have a problem with the card. There are reports of individuals losing their work due to the BUFFER problem.

Well done Mr Bloom…not only has he pitched himself as the HD SLR Guru but landed a job with Lucasfilm doing what he has always wanted to do…be part of a big budget film. Things are certainly hotting up in the shallow depth of field camp with both Sony and Panasonic producing film like SDoF camcorders due late 2010. It does bode the question…where is RED in all this…so much hype yet nothing but vapourware, such a shame.

Philip Bloom “Red Tails” is George Lucas’ long time pet project. Based on the real life Tuskeegee airmen, the only African American fighter squadron in the US military. This is a fictional story with a nice old fashioned war film feel to it. This isn’t Saving Private Ryan! It has a great cast….Cuba Gooding Jr, Terrance Howard, Method Man, Tristan Wilds from “The Wire” (who owns a 5d!), David Oyelowo, Nate Parker, Ne-Yo and many more.

Before I flew out there I liaised closely with Lucasfilm’s Rick McCallum. We had to make sure we had everything we needed. We researched all camera and lens options. Would we shoot Canon L series? PL? 1DmkiV? 5DmkII etc… accessories, monitors. You name it…we talked about it.”

Speaking to Phil…”At the beginning we all had our own ways by the end we were all filming as an integrated team which was a big learning curve for all of us”.

Like this:

Before you are all going crazy in this one, I have to stress that Sony did not gave ANY information at all on this “black” Camcorder… However during the Alpha NEX series presentation Sony show a slide giving us the very basic on their future Killer Camcorder.
Schedule to be launch later next year, this full HD AVCHD based camcorder will feature an Exmor APS HD CMOS and interchangeable lenses compatible with Sony line-up (with or without the need of an adapter)… So who knows, maybe we will have the chance to learn more about this baby at next CEATEC or CES.

Looks like Sony have woken up to the HDSLR threat with this further film like SDoF camcorder due out early 2011. It looks a bit top heavy for me but it’s a further nail in the coffin for the HDSLR that’s for sure !

Like this:

Three-dimensional TV is being introduced into the marketplace with very few short-term studies and no long-term studies about the technology’s effect on the health of viewers.

Last month, Samsung issued a warning about possible health effects associated with 3-D TV, including altered vision, lightheadedness and even stroke or epileptic seizure. Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Washington have published papers that found that visual disparities in 3-D TV images can put physical strain on viewers.

Many questions remain regarding the one-size-fits all approach that has to be taken for mass audiences to enjoy the 3-D experience, Jannick Rolland, a professor at the University of Central Florida’s School of Optics, told EETimes. Rolland is known as a pioneer in virtual reality studies.

Rolland said those unanswered questions include: Can the 3-D glasses accommodate an interocular distance between eyes that is much less or more than average? Will adaptation to visual disparities interfere with vision after a movie? Will extended exposure permanently change brain functions in unsupervised children who watch for hours on end?

To find out the answers to these questions, some labs are already doing research. However, the TV industry is racing forward with the technology, assuming any health issues will be minor.

The University of Southern California Entertainment Technology Center will research reports from consumers regarding adverse reactions in the coming year as 3-D TV sets enter the marketplace. Engineering refinements to 3-D technology, however, could be required if even a small percentage of users suffer from health problems related to viewing.

“I think it will be safe,” Rolland told the magazine. “It’s challenging, but I think developers are on the right track; it’s just a matter of finding the best implementation. 3-D TV is such a fantastic technology that it is going to succeed, but you are using your eyes in a different way than you do in the real world; you are focusing and converging your eyes at different locations, which could put a strain on your eyes if the system is not well-implemented.”

Like this:

Sorry for lack of content recently but I have a trapped nerve in my right shoulder which is affecting my hand making computer work very painful so if you don’t mind I will need to give it a rest for a week or two…

Strange but my mother started last week having very irritated eyes (not hayfever), this week I had what I put down to hayfever but my left eye became infected then to cap it all my friends husband who is a GP has an irritated left eye. That’s two people who don’t suffer hayfever having irritated eyes plus me.

As a cameraman I need my eyes to be A1 for obvious reasons but I do think there may be some milage in an upsurge of irritated eyes being down to fine volcanic ash. I would be interested to hear from any other UK or European cameramen/women with similar findings.

I now wear a set of clear lens BLOC glasses when I am outside to prevent pollen/ash entering my eyes.

It does mention the following warning in the NHS UK website…

Is anybody at special risk from the ash?

People with existing respiratory conditions, such as chronic bronchitis, emphysema and asthma, may feel the effects more than others. In affected areas, they are recommended to carry inhalers or other medication as a precaution.

People who wear contact lenses may want to avoid wearing their lenses in areas with ash fall.

How do I know if there is ash in the air?

The HPA says that if people who are outside notice symptoms such as “itchy or irritated eyes, runny nose, sore throat or dry cough, or if they notice a dusty haze in the air or can smell sulphur, rotten eggs, or a strong acidic smell, they may wish to limit their activities outdoors or return indoors”.